CARIBVISTA | IAGRO SAT CARIBBEAN
AGRICULTURE FEASIBILITY STUDY // BELIZE
Real costs. Real yields. Real research.
Belize-specific crop economics.
A feasibility study for activating Belize's 489,137 hectares of idle grassland. MAFSE partnership, BSI sugar diversification, Toledo cacao expansion, and leveraging the lowest population density in Central America for food export.
Pilot CAPEX (300 ha)
$3.2M
Orange Walk + Cayo districts
10-Year IRR
17.8%
Pilot breakeven: Year 3
Revenue at Scale
$16M
2,000 ha full deployment (Year 5)
Jobs Created
6,500
Across all 6 districts
Lowest population density = highest opportunity. Belize has 430,000 people on 2.7 million hectares — 6.3 ha per person, highest in CARICOM. Yet the country imports 50% of its food. With BSI/ASR sugar restructuring creating diversification pressure and Toledo's cacao sector proving premium export viability, Belize is primed for agricultural transformation.
FAO YIELD DATAMAFSE PARTNERSHIPBSI SUGAR DATACARICOM TRADEEU-CARIFORUM EPATOLEDO CACAO
SECTION 1
Crop Strategy: 65% Food Security, 35% Export
Diversify beyond sugar and citrus monoculture. Feed the nation first, then export premium products to CARICOM and the EU. Toledo cacao proves Belize can command premium prices.
65% Edible — beans, corn, roots, vegetables
35% Export — cacao, turmeric, vanilla, annatto
EDIBLE CROPS (65% OF ACREAGE)
Red Kidney Beans
1.5-3 t/ha
$4,500-9,000/ha
2/yr
Corn (yellow/white)
3-6 t/ha
$2,400-5,000/ha
2/yr
Cassava
15-25 t/ha
$5,000-9,000/ha
1/yr
Sweet Potatoes
12-20 t/ha
$6,000-10,000/ha
1.5-2/yr
Habanero Peppers
15-25 t/ha
$30,000-60,000/ha
2/yr
Tomatoes
25-40 t/ha
$24,000-40,000/ha
2-3/yr
Plantains
15-30 t/ha
$7,500-15,000/ha
Year-round
Lettuce / Greens
15-25 t/ha
$20,000-40,000/ha
6-8/yr
EXPORT / HIGH-VALUE CROPS (35% OF ACREAGE)
Cacao (fine flavour)
$5,000-15,000
0.5-1.5 t/ha — Toledo terroir, premium chocolate market
Annatto (achiote)
$4,000-10,000
0.8-1.5 t/ha — Natural food colouring, growing demand
Turmeric
$22,000-40,000
25-30 t/ha — EU duty-free via CARIFORUM
Vanilla
$100,000-300,000
0.3-0.8 t/ha — Highest value per hectare, 3-year start
Coconut
$8,000-20,000
6,000-10,000 nuts/ha — Caribbean + US market
PROVEN SUCCESS: TOLEDO CACAO
Belize fine-flavour cacao commands $4,000-8,000/tonne
Toledo cacao growers (Maya farmers) produce International Cocoa Organisation certified fine-flavour cacao sold to premium chocolate makers worldwide. The Toledo Cacao Growers' Association (TCGA) demonstrates that smallholder cooperatives can access premium international markets. This model can be replicated across Belize's idle grassland for other high-value crops.
Source: TCGA, International Cocoa Organisation, Belize Trade and Investment Development Service
SECTION 2
District-by-District Strategy
Orange Walk
125K ha idle
SUGAR DIVERSIFICATION
BSI restructuring opens land for diversified crops alongside sugarcane
Key crops: Beans, corn, habaneros, turmeric
Cayo
105K ha idle
MIXED FARMING HUB
Western highlands -- good soils, water access from Belize River
Key crops: Vegetables, roots, corn, livestock
Belize
88K ha idle
URBAN SUPPLY CHAIN
Close to Belize City market -- fresh produce logistics advantage
Key crops: Vegetables, greens, herbs
Toledo
72K ha idle
PREMIUM EXPORT
Proven fine-flavour cacao model -- expand to other premium crops
Key crops: Cacao, vanilla, annatto, spices
Stann Creek
52K ha idle
CITRUS + DIVERSIFICATION
Existing citrus infrastructure can support crop diversification
Key crops: Citrus, coconut, passion fruit
Corozal
47K ha idle
NORTHERN CORRIDOR
Border district -- access to Chetumal/Mexico market
Key crops: Sugar alternatives, vegetables
Hurricane Season
HIGHJun-Nov — 12%/yr probability — 15-30% crop value
Protected agriculture. Root crops underground. CCRIF insurance. Belize is below main hurricane corridor.
Flooding
MEDIUMJun-Jan — 20%/yr probability — Yield reduction 15-25%
Raised beds for lowland areas. Improved drainage. Flood-tolerant varieties.
Labour Shortage
MEDIUMYear-round — 35%/yr probability — Higher wages, slower scaling
Mechanisation + training. 430K population = small labour pool. Technology reduces workers/ha needed.
Market Access
MEDIUMYear-round — 20%/yr probability — Price volatility
CARICOM + EU-CARIFORUM EPA + Mexico border access. Diversified crop mix.
THE TECHNOLOGY ADVANTAGE
Satellite Monitoring for 6 Districts
With the lowest population density in Central America, Belize cannot deploy enough ground teams. IAGRO SAT provides wall-to-wall coverage across all 2.7 million hectares at shared-infrastructure cost.
Sugarcane Monitoring
Track sugar vs. diversified crops in Orange Walk. Yield prediction for BSI mills and new crop rotation.
Citrus Health
Detect citrus greening (HLB) via spectral analysis in Stann Creek before visible symptoms appear.
Cacao Quality Mapping
NDVI + moisture indices for Toledo cacao groves. Correlate satellite data with fine-flavour quality indicators.
Hurricane Damage
Automatic before/after NDVI within 48 hours. Quantify damage per field for CCRIF insurance claims.
Deforestation Alerts
Real-time tree cover change detection. Critical for Belize National Protected Areas System compliance.
Export Verification
Satellite-verified production data for EU-CARIFORUM trade compliance and organic certification.
COST COMPARISON
STANDALONE PRECISION AG
$250+/ha/yr
Drones, sensors, software, analysts
→
IAGRO SAT SHARED PLATFORM
$15-30/ha/yr
Same satellite data. Shared infrastructure.
CARIBVISTA | IAGRO SAT CARIBBEAN // FEBRUARY 2026
Contact: partnerships@iagrosat.com
© 2026 IAGRO SAT Caribbean. All rights reserved.
Sources: FAO, MAFSE, BSI, TCGA, IDB, CARICOM, Caribbean Export
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